Panti Bliss is resplendent in shimmering green sequins and heels, with a corset creating eye-popping curves on her Amazonian frame.

She is the 'Queen of Ireland', the drag queen-turned accidental activist who came from a traditional Catholic family in rural Ireland to be a hero of the LGBT community and the face of liberal thinking in a staunchly religious country.

It is hard to believe underneath all the make-up and blonde curls there is a 47-year-old, T-shirt-and-jeans-wearing bloke named Rory O'Neill.

Ms Bliss spoke to Lateline about growing up gay and becoming a symbol of Ireland's successful Yes campaign in last year's gay marriage referendum.

She also weighed in on Australia's controversial Safe Schools program and the move towards a plebiscite on same-sex marriage.

Coming out to traditional Irish Catholic parents

My parents are both deeply Catholic. They kneel down beside their bed every night to say their prayers, my mother goes to mass every day, she's a minister of the Eucharist. She is the full on 100 per cent Irish Catholic mother.

"I had an idyllic childhood growing up in this small town in the west of Ireland. Lots of kids running around, lots of brothers and sisters. My parents are both deeply Catholic, traditionally Catholic, they kneel down beside their bed every night to say their prayers, my mother goes to mass every day, she's a minister of the Eucharist. She is the full-on 100 per cent Irish Catholic mother.

"I came out to my parents when I was in my 20s. When I first came out [my Mother] had a little trouble. I never doubted for a moment that she loved me but she definitely had some difficulty combining those two things: Her Catholicism that meant so much to her and accepting her son. But it didn't take long. Her brother is a priest in Heathen England. He called her up and told her to get over it, it will be fine, that God didn't really mind. And it's been fine ever since."

Being called a fag and dealing with homophobia

Rory O'Neill once had a milk carton thrown at his head by a group of men in a passing car who also called him a fag.

Look at me, I'm a 47-year-old drag queen. I'm the gayest thing in the world. But there are still moments when I find myself sort of checking myself to maybe not be too gay in a certain circumstance.

"I think every LGBT person experiences those moments where either something is thrown at you, or metaphorically something is thrown at you.

"Because people are treating you badly, because of a sort of inherent facet of who you are that you can't change, it's a really difficult thing to deal with especially when you're younger.

"I think we all internalise it. I mean look at me, I'm a 47-year-old drag queen, I'm the gayest thing in the world. But there are still moments when I find myself sort of checking myself to maybe not be too gay in a certain circumstance."

Why Australia should allow the Safe Schools program

"What are people are afraid of? I think there's this weird idea that somehow you're going to turn kids gay - as if that were possible.

"I've come from a straight family with straight parents and straight friends and straight neighbours in the straightest town in the straightest country in the whole world and I still turned out to be gay. This is definitely innate.

"So the choices are, do you condemn that kid to struggle against it and be bullied about it and all those things that we've learnt happen to young LGBT people? Or do you cut that off and encourage kids to accept all of the kids for who they are?

Why the same-sex marriage plebiscite is not a good idea

Panti Bliss says the six months leading up to Ireland's referendum on same-sex marriage last year was a "difficult and depressing" time for the LGBT community.

It was suddenly okay for people to say the most heinous things about you and your friends.

"I would never recommend that to any country because it's difficult. It's a risky strategy because if you lose you might have to wait another generation to try again and I don't think that the majority should get to vote on the rights of minorities.

"During that debate it was suddenly okay for people to say the most heinous things about you and your friends. To be walking down streets and there were posters hanging off every lamp post saying that you're some kind of threat to children or people going on television and saying that you're literally a threat to the very fabric of society and that somehow giving you full and equal citizenship will have dire consequences.

"I wouldn't recommend a referendum or plebiscite to anybody, [but] I think if you have them and you get the results you want, they're incredibly powerful."

Going back to Ballinrobe in drag

The whole town had put little rainbow flags on their doors. It was just lovely.

Panti says it was an overwhelming experience to go back to her hometown of Ballinrobe to perform her drag show.

"It's your typical country town. I was your typical gay kid growing up and I always felt a little bit awkward there, a little bit weird there. Even though it's a lovely town and the people are lovely.

"To be that gay boy going back to that tiny town to do a show in that tiny town where they don't have a theatre so they had put up a marquee in the middle of the car park of the local tyre business.

"The whole town came out and old ladies sitting on their plastic chairs and everything. It was a pretty overwhelming thing. The whole town had put little rainbow flags on their doors. It was just lovely."

Watch the interview with Panti Bliss on Lateline at 10.30pm (AEDT) on ABC TV.